so i was working a shitty minimum wage job, and ended up quitting without notice. the owner rarely pays any employees on payday. we usually get our checks a few days late, which often bounce anyways, or we'll get paid cash under the table in small increments. for this reason, and several others, myself and another employee quit this past friday.

that saturday evening, the owner sent text messages to the other employee basically saying that "he would makes us hurt like he did (for not working saturday night)". all the employees know that he routinely will hold a former employee's check for weeks or a month for no other reason than spite. we went to the business to get our checks on monday. the owner tells us he mailed our checks. this is a b.s. excuse he gives everyone. when asked to see my paystub or something showing what my pay is, the owner straight refused. when i asked when he mailed it exactly, he would only reply "i mailed it". this is after we told him we know the checks are in his office because a) we saw them the previous night; b) other employees told us they saw the checks also. i called the nc labor board on the spot, and the woman told the owner he had to release our checks my midnight per state law. while on the phone with the labor board rep, the owner says he'll give us our checks in our hands that same monday. as soon as he hangs up, he recants that promise and basically tells us to fuck off.

what can i do to get my paycheck asap? complaints have been filed with the labor board (could take forever to work it's course), the franchise's corporate office (who apparently can't do anything), and spoken to a lawyer (who can only suggest a lawsuit, which will obviously take time).

best bet is to take him to small claims court and attempt to file a lien against him and his business. Don't know if that's even possible but if you can, it will force him to pay you before he can do anything on credit, get loans, et al. But you need to talk to the lawyer about that.

Does he leave his office often? Is there a way for any current employees (obviously, ones you trust) to snag your check (and, if they're feeling nice, the checks for those who quit with you) and deliver them to you? Clearly, this is risky for them, but if they're about to quit anyways...

I'm wondering if he's waiting to give you your checks not only to be an ass, but also for when his account is the emptiest, and they're most likely to bounce, causing you more trouble.

You mentioned this was a franchise...of what company?

Something else you can do is basically picket his business. It's even better if you can do it without needing the "he treats his employees like shit" angle (e.g., for a restaurant, copies of health inspection reports with egregious problems highlight, or BBB complaints, or other such things) - stuff that even if people think you're just grinding an axe, there's documentation.

Basically, motivate him to give you your checks

These are all stop-gap suggestions until ^^ is done and while you're letting the gov't take its dear old sweet time do its job.

Assuming there isn't more than one side of this story, I wouldn't stop with just getting my money. If this asshole really is doing exactly what you describe here, I'd make damn sure that he faced the long dick of the law.

As has been said, there is not a way you can legally get your money "now". About the only thing you can do is present a formal letter via certified mail to the business owner with a detailed summary of what has occurred, signed and dated, and politely saying, "If this cannot be resolved, will seek legal options to have resolved".

It will take time to have it released. If you do plan on pursuing this, start collecting paperwork, contact information, etc. to have available if needed. If when you arrive to court and it becomes a "he said she said" discussion without evidence, sorry, you will have wasted your time AND still be without a final paycheck.

sorry it's taken me so long to get back to y'all, but i forgot i made this thread. here's an update:

so far the owner has lied...to the nc labor board - told them he called me "several times" to try and get me my check prior to payday (monday). he never called me once. i'm sure i can have call records subpoenaed during a lawsuit to prove this. the only "call" he made prior to monday was sending a text to the other person basically proving that he planned to "make [us] hurt".

a police officer - the other person and i went to the business after speaking with the owner on the phone. he told me to stop calling him via the only contact info he gave us (his cell number). i told him i had every legal right to try and obtain a debt, especially since he specifically told us to call him at the number on his business card. i told him then i will come to the business to speak with him. he dared me to "come and get arrested for harassment". me knowing the law, i called his bluff. he did call an officer. the officer basically reiterated we're not harassing him, and he should give us our checks if he is in possession. the owner told the officer he mailed the checks. i obviously still didn't receive it.

other employee's grandmother - this is where it gets really funny to me. owner tells the grandmother the same b.s. story about mailing the check. he then changed his mind and tells her "i'll call your granddaughter when i decide to give her her check". the owner then names me, and tells the grandmother "tyrone was homeless. i took him off the streets and gave him a job. he fucked me, so i'm fucking him." i shit you not. the grandmother is willing to testify.

Quote :

"If I'm not mistaken, a company has 30 days to get employees their final check upon termination of employment.

Do you have any company property (a uniform, nametags, etc etc). Again, I'm not an expert, but I think they can legally hold your final check until those items are returned as well."

that is somewhat correct if there was an investigation pending. also, this isn't my final paycheck. i will be owed another paycheck after this. and the owner pretty much fucked any chance of using this as an excuse, because he sent that text basically admitting to being malicious and unwarranted in his actions. he also verbalized his intents on several occasions in front of 3rd-party witnesses. he's not a bright one. his wife, who is having to work shifts due to a shortage of workers, even tried telling me that employees are obligated by law to give a 2-week notice before quitting. she was adamant about this. you see the kind of imbeciles i'm having to deal with???

i just thought of the picketing idea before i read this thread. i called a friend of mine who recently passed his bar, but can't represent me because he'll be working for the state. he informed me of some basic picketing laws, and it seems like a viable idea at this particular juncture. so, myself and a couple of other recent former employees who've been fucked are planning on picketing. should be fun.

Make sure to take pics of your picketing adventure. Even better video tape that shit, especially the beginning where I imagine douchebag former boss will come outside to have a few choice words with you. Good luck.

"his wife, who is having to work shifts due to a shortage of workers, even tried telling me that employees are obligated by law to give a 2-week notice before quitting. she was adamant about this. you see the kind of imbeciles i'm having to deal with???"

Any local news station would be all over this one. Just take your pick from whatever city you live closest to. Also, I like the option of getting a police escort to get your personal property from his office. You should have called the labor board right back when he hung up and told you that he wasn't going to do what he told them he would. Also, record any and all conversation you have with him, save text messages, voicelamil, etc. you will need them if it goes to court.

Having the text message to show the news station would hurt him too. Either way, he'll cave soon and you will get your checks. However, if this were to make you default on your bill and have something shut off before you get the check, sue him.

This is a pretty crappy situation for you, but his stupidity is quite funny.

if dude is in dire need of some piddly ass minimum wage check, then he damn sure shouldnt be walking out on his employers.

if he hates his douchebag employer so much he wants to fuck him over by not showing up for shifts, then he better be prepared to wait for that last check.

the law is ultimately on his side, but it will take time. the local and state governments aren't going to go smack a tax-paying business owner around on the word of a couple scrubby minimum-wage workers with a grievance.

"Does he leave his office often? Is there a way for any current employees (obviously, ones you trust) to snag your check (and, if they're feeling nice, the checks for those who quit with you) and deliver them to you? Clearly, this is risky for them, but if they're about to quit anyways..."

These people saying "if you're in such dire need don't walk out" and "your fault for fucking over an employer" are the same people who post in shitty job threads saying "if you don't like it then quit. It's a right to work state".

I don't care how/when/why he quit. Fact of the matter is he deserves his pay and there is absolutely no reason why he should not get it in a reasonable amount of time.

FYI, if your boss bounces payroll (or just doesn't pay you), you qualify immediately for unemployment. Probably far too late now, as I'm sure you've gotten another crappy job, but keep that in mind for the future.

my bad, t-dub. i don't usually log on anymore, and forgot about this thread again.

i finally got paid last night. i was still owed two checks, so the owner wrote me out a single, consolidated one. the banks were closed at that point, but i still wanted to cash the check. not that i really needed it, but i wanted a little extra drinking money. i already knew the grocery stores and wal-mart wouldn't cash the check, due to the fact that they're owed so much money as it is. pawn shop wouldn't, because the check was signed by hand. went to a couple of gas stations, and was told they no longer cashed checks from this company.

to answer a couple of questions:- miami subs in fayetteville. don't worry, this situation is unique to this specific store. the raleigh location is under different ownership.- one of the very first things i did was speak to various lawyers from the very beginning.- tyler, how much do i still owe you???- i'm not in dire need of the money at all. that's irrelevant anyways. i worked. i deserve to be paid. it's as simple as that.